Jess' parents (and her brother, and grandfather) will be here in two weeks from today. That means we have 4 weekend days to do everything that needs to be done (smaller things can be done on the weekdays).
We need to get a bed for her grandfather. Probably a double sized mattress, box spring, and frame. We also need to put down flooring in the attic, move all the stuff that we're storing in the garage up there, and then clean the garage out. There's also some yard work to be done. Both cars need to be cleaned out and washed. The Christmas lights need to come down (yes, we're that trashy). It would be nice to get some patio furniture. I'd also like to get something on the walls in this place — it looks so barren. Jess' computer needs to be moved upstairs, our closet needs to be cleaned out, and I'd like to do something about all the wires behind the entertainment center. Jess needs a new mouse (thanks, Toby), and the fridge needs to be cleaned out. All the boxes in the smaller upstairs bedroom and in our master bedroom need to be moved into the new floored attic. We need to paint two small spots in the smaller upstairs bedroom, and two other small spots in the game room. In addition to all that, we need to do all the basic cleaning — mopping, dusting, vacuuming, polishing, etc.
That's a lot. It seems almost impossible. When something seems impossible, I break it into smaller tasks that are easier to grasp and prioritize those tasks so that, if everything can't be done, at least the most important things are done first (all items include driving time, which is significant. If multiple purchases can be coupled into one trip out, time will be saved).
# The Attic (4 hours). There are lots of things hiding in this house that are merely clutter because we've been too lazy to take care of them. Since we have very little storage in the house, there's no place to put the stuff until we sort out a good home for it all. Taking care of it the right way would consume way too much time. By flooring the attic we can throw anything unsightly up there and deal with it later.
## Measure the attic.
## Buy the boards.
## Cut the boards.
## Install the boards.
# Grandpa's Bed (2 hours). If he doesn't have a place to sleep it's not going to be much of a vacation for him. If Jess opts to try and find a used bed, this could take quite a bit longer since we'd have to go from place to place (or call around) until we found something we liked that we were willing to pay for. This estimate assumes it won't take more than 30 minutes to find one to buy.
## Find a bed.
## Buy the bed.
## Install the bed.
# Christmas Lights and Yard Work (2 hours). Our yard looks terrible until this is done. It's a little bit of work for a large payoff which makes it high on the list.
## Take down Christmas lights.
## Clean yard by driveway.
## Find a place to take the Christmas tree.
## Remove the Christmas tree.
## Pull weeds.
# Clean the Garage (1 hour). Jess' grandfather hopes to assemble some birdhouses and a herb planter for us while he's here. He needs a place to work.
# Move boxes and assorted junk into the attic (1 hour). Again, this is a huge payoff for just a little effort.
# Clean the Fridge (30 minutes).
# Re-organize entertainment center (1 hour).
# Deep cleaning (4 hours). We'll do this as late as possible (most likely throughout the week before they come) so that it'll still be clean when they get here.
# Wash cars (1.5 hours). It's hard to get anywhere without a car. And ours cars are too messy to hold any number of people comfortably. This should be done as late as possible so they'll still be clean.
# Painting (30 minutes). It's not that noticeable and, therefore, not that important.
# Move Jess' Computer (30 minutes).
# Get Jess a new mouse (1.5 hours). I can do this one day at work and cut that time down to 0 hours.
# Buy patio furniture (2 hours).
# Put something on the walls (unknown).
With any luck, we should be able to get the Attic and the Yard work done today.
Tomorrow we should be able to get Grandpa's bed and clean the garage.
Throughout this week, we'll take care of the fridge, the entertainment center and the painting. I'll buy Jess a mouse during my lunch break at work one day this week. Maybe even get the boxes moved into the attic.
Next weekend we'll wash the cars, move any boxes that didn't get moved, and, possibly, look for patio furniture. I'll also move Jess' computer. We can also consider some of the deep cleaning that's less likely to be ruined over the course of the following week.
Throughout next week, we'll handle the deep cleaning, and put the finishing touches on everything.
Then, that weekend, they'll be here.
Seems like a good plan. Now, to put it in action.
